Battle of Fort Sumter In the early morning of April 12, 1861, the Confederates opened fire on Fort Sumter. They gave the Union's commander, Robert Anderson an hour to evacuate before firing. Edmund Ruffin, a notable Confederate advocate pro slavery, fired the Civil War’s first shot. When the war ended, he would fire one of the last shots as he committed suicide due to the South's defeat. After being bombarded for 34 hours, Fort Sumter ran low on ammunition and surrendered. After the surrender, Anderson took the fort’s flag to the North where it became a symbol of revenge and a rallying point for the Union. Ironically, no one was killed in the Battle of Fort Sumter, the first battle of the bloodiest war in U.S. history.
First Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run, or the First Battle of Manassas, was fought on July 21, 1861, just outside of Manassas, Virginia. It was the first significant battle of the American Civil War. Just months after the start of the war at Fort Sumter, the Northern public demanded for a march against the Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia, to bring an early vantage point for the Union. Yielding to this political pressure, unprepared Union Army troops under General Irvin McDowell advanced across Bull Run, to initiate a fight against the equally unseasoned Confederate Army under General P.G.T. Beauregard near Manassas Junction. McDowell's plan for a surprise flank attack against the Confederate left was not well executed by his inexperienced officers and men, but the Confederates, who had been planning to attack the Union left flank, found themselves at a disadvantage. Confederate reinforcements under the command of General Joseph Johnston arrived from the Shenandoah Valley by railroad and the course of the battle changed. A brigade of Virginians under an unknown colonel from the Virginia Military Institute, Thomas Jackson, stood their ground. During this battle, Jackson gained respect and received his famous nickname, "Stonewall". The Confederates launched a strong counterattack and as the Union troops began withdrawing under pressure, many panicked and frantically ran in the direction of nearby Washington, D.C. Both sides were mentally devastated by the violence and casualties of the battle, and they realized that the war would most likely be much longer and bloodier than they had originally estimated.
Battle of Shiloh
Strategy Map of the Battle of Shiloh, April 6, 1862
On the morning of April 6, 1862, Confederates commanded by Albert Sidney Johnston charged into Ulysses S. Grant's camp surrounding Pittsburg Landing in western Tennessee, initiating an extremely bloody battle of the Civil War. More people were killed in the two days that the Battle of Shiloh took place than in the entire American Revolution and Mexican War combined. The battle would be remembered by the name of a little church next to which some of the most ferocious fighting surged - Shiloh, a Hebrew word meaning "place of peace."
Second Battle of Bull Run
The Second Battle of Bull Run, also known as the Second Battle of Manassas, was fought between August 28–30, 1862. It was the climax of an offensive campaign waged by Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia against Union General John Pope's Army of Virginia, and a battle of much larger scale and statistics than the First Battle of Bull Run fought in 1861 on the same ground. Following a wide-ranging flanking march, General "Stonewall" Jackson captured the Union supply depot at Manassas Junction, threatening Pope's line of communications with Washington, D.C. Withdrawing a few miles to the northwest, Jackson took up defensive positions on Stony Ridge. Still in the first day of battle, Jackson attacked a Union column just east of Gainesville, at Brawner's Farm, resulting in a stalemate. Around the same time, the wing of Lee's army commanded by General James Longstreet broke through light Union resistance in the Battle of Thoroughfare Gap and approached the battlefield. Pope became convinced that he had trapped Jackson and concentrated the bulk of his army against him. On August 29, Pope launched a series of short attacks on Jackson's troopss along an unfinished railroad grade. The attacks caused a large number of casualties on both sides. At roughly noon, Longstreet arrived on the field from Thoroughfare Gap and positioned his soldiers on Jackson's right flank. On the final day of battle, Pope renewed his attacks, seemingly unaware that Longstreet was on the field. When the large mass of Confederate artillery destroyed a Union onslaught by General Fitz John Porter's V Corps, Longstreet's wing of 25,000 men, divided in five, counterattacked in the largest, simultaneous assault of the war. The left flank of the Union was demolished and the army was driven back to Bull Run. Only a successful rear guard by the Union prevented a replay of the disaster in the First Battle of Manassas.
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest single day of the war. It began just outside of
Strategy Map of the Battle of Antietam, September 17, 1862
Sharpsburg early in the morning on September 17, 1862. Union troops under the command of General Joseph Hooker attacked the Confederates near the Dunker church. Later in the day, the fighting moved to the Sunken Road, and then to a bridge over Antietam Creek, where troops under General Ambrose Burnside fought their way to. After having secured the bridge, Union troops were driven off of it when rebel reinforcements arrived at the end of the day.
Battle of Chancellorsville
On the first day of the Battle of Chancellorsville, May 1, 1863, General Hooker of the Union, who was approaching Chancellorsville, was seen by General Robert E. Lee of the South. Lee divided his outnumbered force and rushed most of his men west to prevent the Union from advancing, defying all military convention. On the second day, Lee divided his men yet again and sent Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson with 28,000 men, who were guided by a local civilian through the wilderness, to march around Hooker's lines in the morning.
Battle of Gettysburg
In the early morning of July 1, 1863, Confederate soldiers charged into Union cavalrymen on the Chambersburg Pike, northwest of Gettysburg Town, beginning the Battle of Gettysburg. Each side sent for help. The rebels got there first, and by afternoon had driven the Federals south of town, where they rallied into defensive positions on Culp's Hill and Cemetery Hill. By July 2, 1863, 150,000 Union and Confederate troops had converged on the little Pennsylvania town. The southerners occupied a line west of the Emmittsburg Road, along the Seminary Ridge. The northern men waited along Cemetery Ridge - a slightly more elevated crest that ran south toward two hills, Big and Little Round Top. Lee's plan called for an assault on the left, or southernmost, end of the Union line. At about three in the afternoon on the final day of battle, Robert E. Lee ordered the most costly assault of the entire war against the center of the Union troops - The Confederates lost and thousands were killed.
What Happened Prior to the Battle (asipser contribution)
Henry Thomas Harrison
The Battle of Gettysburg took place in a small town in Pennsylvania due to a spy named Henry Thomas Harrison. Before the Battle of Gettysburg, Robert E. Lee was stationed in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He was missing two of his corps and had no cavalry, so he was unable to get information on enemy positions. Lee decided to hire a Confederate spy named Henry Thomas Harrison. Prior to aiding Lee, Harrison worked for James Longstreet, a Confederate Lieutenant General. Harrison told Lee that the Union army was stationed in Frederick and had already crossed the Potomac. This surprised him as he thought the Union army was at Virginia. Lee halted his soldiers and placed them in Cashtown, just a few miles west of Gettysburg. He then waited for the rest of his army to reunite. Another Confederate General, Henry Heth, came to Cashtown on June 29th with his army, three days before the battle. Heth attacked Gettysburg several days later, depriving Lee of his reinforcements. During this time, the Union had no spies to supply them information, but they did intercept a Confederate letter. This caused the Union general, George Meade, to place some of his army in Gettysburg to await the Confederacy.
Battle of Gettysburg 1st Day: July 1, 1863
Battle of Gettysburg 2nd Day: July 2, 1863
Battle of Gettysburg 3rd Day: July 3, 1863
Union Grand Strategy as designed by General McClellan
Union Grand Strategy
The Union's grand strategy was to send troops in a 1,000 mile front to surround the Confederacy and advance on its center from all sides. A large number of troops were sent to attack Richmond, the Confederate capital, from the north. At the same time, two other sets of troops headed west over the Appalachian Mountain Range to secure the southern heart of the Confederacy. The remainder of the troops were sent in vessels down the Mississippi and along the Atlantic Coast to block southern ports and attack from the deepest south northwards. 2.9 million Union soldiers served in this plan and there were 630,000 casualties in the North. 1.2 million southerners served and there were 340,000 casualties in the South.
Individual Battles of the Civil War
Table of Contents
Battle Summaries
Battle of Fort Sumter
In the early morning of April 12, 1861, the Confederates opened fire on Fort Sumter. They gave the Union's commander, Robert Anderson an hour to evacuate before firing. Edmund Ruffin, a notable Confederate advocate pro slavery, fired the Civil War’s first shot. When the war ended, he would fire one of the last shots as he committed suicide due to the South's defeat. After being bombarded for 34 hours, Fort Sumter ran low on ammunition and surrendered. After the surrender, Anderson took the fort’s flag to the North where it became a symbol of revenge and a rallying point for the Union. Ironically, no one was killed in the Battle of Fort Sumter, the first battle of the bloodiest war in U.S. history.
First Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run, or the First Battle of Manassas, was fought on July 21, 1861, just outside of Manassas, Virginia. It was the first significant battle of the American Civil War. Just months after the start of the war at Fort Sumter, the Northern public demanded for a march against the Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia, to bring an early vantage point for the Union. Yielding to this political pressure, unprepared Union Army troops under General Irvin McDowell advanced across Bull Run, to initiate a fight against the equally unseasoned Confederate Army under General P.G.T. Beauregard near Manassas Junction. McDowell's plan for a surprise flank attack against the Confederate left was not well executed by his inexperienced officers and men, but the Confederates, who had been planning to attack the Union left flank, found themselves at a disadvantage. Confederate reinforcements under the command of General Joseph Johnston arrived from the Shenandoah Valley by railroad and the course of the battle changed. A brigade of Virginians under an unknown colonel from the Virginia Military Institute, Thomas Jackson, stood their ground. During this battle, Jackson gained respect and received his famous nickname, "Stonewall". The Confederates launched a strong counterattack and as the Union troops began withdrawing under pressure, many panicked and frantically ran in the direction of nearby Washington, D.C. Both sides were mentally devastated by the violence and casualties of the battle, and they realized that the war would most likely be much longer and bloodier than they had originally estimated.Battle of Shiloh
On the morning of April 6, 1862, Confederates commanded by Albert Sidney Johnston charged into Ulysses S. Grant's camp surrounding Pittsburg Landing in western Tennessee, initiating an extremely bloody battle of the Civil War. More people were killed in the two days that the Battle of Shiloh took place than in the entire American Revolution and Mexican War combined. The battle would be remembered by the name of a little church next to which some of the most ferocious fighting surged - Shiloh, a Hebrew word meaning "place of peace."
Second Battle of Bull Run
The Second Battle of Bull Run, also known as the Second Battle of Manassas, was fought between August 28–30, 1862. It was the climax of an offensive campaign waged by Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia against Union General John Pope's Army of Virginia, and a battle of much larger scale and statistics than the First Battle of Bull Run fought in 1861 on the same ground. Following a wide-ranging flanking march, General "Stonewall" Jackson captured the Union supply depot at Manassas Junction, threatening Pope's line of communications with Washington, D.C. Withdrawing a few miles to the northwest, Jackson took up defensive positions on Stony Ridge. Still in the first day of battle, Jackson attacked a Union column just east of Gainesville, at Brawner's Farm, resulting in a stalemate. Around the same time, the wing of Lee's army commanded by General James Longstreet broke through light Union resistance in the Battle of Thoroughfare Gap and approached the battlefield. Pope became convinced that he had trapped Jackson and concentrated the bulk of his army against him. On August 29, Pope launched a series of short attacks on Jackson's troopss along an unfinished railroad grade. The attacks caused a large number of casualties on both sides. At roughly noon, Longstreet arrived on the field from Thoroughfare Gap and positioned his soldiers on Jackson's right flank. On the final day of battle, Pope renewed his attacks, seemingly unaware that Longstreet was on the field. When the large mass of Confederate artillery destroyed a Union onslaught by General Fitz John Porter's V Corps, Longstreet's wing of 25,000 men, divided in five, counterattacked in the largest, simultaneous assault of the war. The left flank of the Union was demolished and the army was driven back to Bull Run. Only a successful rear guard by the Union prevented a replay of the disaster in the First Battle of Manassas.Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest single day of the war. It began just outside ofSharpsburg early in the morning on September 17, 1862. Union troops under the command of General Joseph Hooker attacked the Confederates near the Dunker church. Later in the day, the fighting moved to the Sunken Road, and then to a bridge over Antietam Creek, where troops under General Ambrose Burnside fought their way to. After having secured the bridge, Union troops were driven off of it when rebel reinforcements arrived at the end of the day.
Battle of Chancellorsville
On the first day of the Battle of Chancellorsville, May 1, 1863, General Hooker of the Union, who was approaching Chancellorsville, was seen by General Robert E. Lee of the South. Lee divided his outnumbered force and rushed most of his men west to prevent the Union from advancing, defying all military convention. On the second day, Lee divided his men yet again and sent Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson with 28,000 men, who were guided by a local civilian through the wilderness, to march around Hooker's lines in the morning.Battle of Gettysburg
In the early morning of July 1, 1863, Confederate soldiers charged into Union cavalrymen on the Chambersburg Pike, northwest of Gettysburg Town, beginning the Battle of Gettysburg. Each side sent for help. The rebels got there first, and by afternoon had driven the Federals south of town, where they rallied into defensive positions on Culp's Hill and Cemetery Hill. By July 2, 1863, 150,000 Union and Confederate troops had converged on the little Pennsylvania town. The southerners occupied a line west of the Emmittsburg Road, along the Seminary Ridge. The northern men waited along Cemetery Ridge - a slightly more elevated crest that ran south toward two hills, Big and Little Round Top. Lee's plan called for an assault on the left, or southernmost, end of the Union line. At about three in the afternoon on the final day of battle, Robert E. Lee ordered the most costly assault of the entire war against the center of the Union troops - The Confederates lost and thousands were killed.What Happened Prior to the Battle (asipser contribution)
Henry Thomas Harrison
The Battle of Gettysburg took place in a small town in Pennsylvania due to a spy named Henry Thomas Harrison. Before the Battle of Gettysburg, Robert E. Lee was stationed in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He was missing two of his corps and had no cavalry, so he was unable to get information on enemy positions. Lee decided to hire a Confederate spy named Henry Thomas Harrison. Prior to aiding Lee, Harrison worked for James Longstreet, a Confederate Lieutenant General. Harrison told Lee that the Union army was stationed in Frederick and had already crossed the Potomac. This surprised him as he thought the Union army was at Virginia. Lee halted his soldiers and placed them in Cashtown, just a few miles west of Gettysburg. He then waited for the rest of his army to reunite. Another Confederate General, Henry Heth, came to Cashtown on June 29th with his army, three days before the battle. Heth attacked Gettysburg several days later, depriving Lee of his reinforcements. During this time, the Union had no spies to supply them information, but they did intercept a Confederate letter. This caused the Union general, George Meade, to place some of his army in Gettysburg to await the Confederacy.Union Grand Strategy
The Union's grand strategy was to send troops in a 1,000 mile front to surround the Confederacy and advance on its center from all sides. A large number of troops were sent to attack Richmond, the Confederate capital, from the north. At the same time, two other sets of troops headed west over the Appalachian Mountain Range to secure the southern heart of the Confederacy. The remainder of the troops were sent in vessels down the Mississippi and along the Atlantic Coast to block southern ports and attack from the deepest south northwards. 2.9 million Union soldiers served in this plan and there were 630,000 casualties in the North. 1.2 million southerners served and there were 340,000 casualties in the South.Timeline
Bibliography
Information
“The U.S. Civil War 1861-1865.” The History Place. N.p., 1996. Web. 19 May 2011. <http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/>.
"Battles." The US Civil War. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2011. <http://www.theuscivilwar.org/battles.aspx>.
Torgerson, Kelsey, et al. Civil War. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 May 2011. <http://www.harlingen.isd.tenet.edu/coakhist/cwar.html#SHI>.
"Converging on Gettysburg." Oracle ThinkQuest. Web. 21 May 2011. <http://library.thinkquest.org/17525/convergingongettysburg.htm>.
Photographs
"Henry Thomas Harrison." Digital image. Web. 21 May 2011. <http://img0.footnotelibrary.com/img/thumbnail/10501070/278/0/0_0_264_313.jpg>.
“The Civil War.” PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. N.p., 2002. Web. 12 May 2011. <http://www.pbs.org/civilwar/>.
"Document for July 3rd: Lee’s Map of the Battle of Gettysburg." National Archives. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 May 2011.
<http://www.archives.gov/historical-docs/todays-doc/index.html?dod-date=703>.